Our Legacy Speakers

Our past speakers are the foundation of TEDxAsheville’s story—an extraordinary group of thinkers, creators, and changemakers who have shaped each event with their ideas and presence.

From bold innovators to quiet visionaries, they’ve taken the stage to share perspectives that challenge, inspire, and stay with us long after the lights go down. Their talks have sparked meaningful conversations, new collaborations, and fresh ways of seeing the world—both within our community and beyond. We’re deeply grateful for their courage, generosity, and willingness to step into the spotlight, and we’re proud to honor their lasting impact here.


2024

MADAM NSELAA WARD
Finding Unapologetic Self-Worth In Sex, Shame, & Secrets

RED HOFFMAN, MD
Making Meaning After Violent Death

JENNIFER HOUGH
The Movement Of One

ANDY BOBOWSKI
The Missing Piece Of The Education Puzzle

ADITI SETHI, MD
The Art Of Dying Before You Die

DAVID LA MOTTE
Why Heroes Don't Change The World

SALLY COXE
An Ape As An Avatar: How Bonobos Can Lead Us To A Better World

SPENCER SIMRILL
A Blueprint For Racial Healing

MICHAEL ROSENBERG
A Human-Friendly Future In The Age Of Ai


2022

JUSTIN JONES-FOSU
Don't Take The Exit On People

JEFFREY KAPLAN
How To Build A Better Entrepreneur

HANNAH WILLIAMS
Unlock The Gen Z Employee: Inside The Mind Of A Native Digital

NIKKI ROBINSON
Negotiating The Right Of Way Between Humans And Wildlife

J. HACKETT
Black Wall Street: The Key To Unlocking Any City's Economy

DR. MAIYSHA CLAIRBORNE
Bias: The Perspective You May Be Missing

GINGER HUEBNER
Cultivating Connection Through Creativity

LYNDON HARRIS
Heal Your Past, Create Your Future, Through Forgiveness

JENNIFER MacDONALD
Play As A Survival Skill For Displaced Youth


2019

SARA DELANEY
It Takes A Village

KAT HOUGHTON
The Rights Of Nature

EVAN PARKER
Veganism As A Strategy For Sustainability

SARAH POET
Consciously Reclaiming The Feminine & Masculine Within Each Of Us

DANIELE MARTIN
Reparations Through Health And Wellness

ASTRA COYLE
Your Body Can Change Your Mind

TRACEY GREENE-WASHINGTON
Addressing Social Change...What If

DAVID WILCOX
Navigating Song By Song

KRISTA-LYNN LANDOLFI
How Death Taught Me To Live

JEN ALY
Harness Creativity As Your Greatest Business Asset

DANIEL CAPE
A Deeper Understanding Of Creativity


2018

DR. AMY CLIMER
The Power Of Deliberate Creative Teams

LANG HORNTHAL
What Is A Forest Product

FREE PLANET RADIO
Exploring The Intersections Of Musical Cultures Of The World

JESSICA TOMASIN
Music Is Essential

DR. SHANNON SPENCER
12 Baskets Cafe: Bearing Witness To The Truth Of Abundance

ELIZABETH DANKOSKI
How Banning Memorization Can Save Our Children

JOSHUA GINSBERG
The Emotionally Eviscerated Man

WILLIAM SPARKS
The Power Of Self Awareness

FRANCES TACY
Hemp As A Crop


2017

JACKSON CARPENTER
Three Steps To Cut Your Carbon Footprint 60% Today

DAVID LA MOTTE
Music Can Help Us Understand Peace And Conflict

JONATHON SCALES
Follow Through The Follow-Through

MICHELE MOOG-KOUSSA
Inspired: The Journey Of Discovering My Famous Father

DANNA SMITH
U.S. Forests And The Climate Emergency

LYNSIE McKEOWN
Change Your Breath, Change Your World

DANYA PERRY
The Big Gang Theory

ZACHARY PABEN
Do You Have More Heart Than Scars?

BETH HOCKMAN
Family Meetings: A Laboratory Of Love, Leadership And Possibilities

VIRGINIA ROSENBERG
Astrology As A Tool For Social Change


2016

TINA FIREWOLF
Communicating From Chaos To Love

ERIC MATHIS
Exploring The Potential Worlds Of Living Architecture

EMILY SHAULES
Shift Happens: Transform Your Life Into One You

BLOOM POST
Crazy In A Good Way

WILLIAM DISSEN
Food Citizen: Changing The World One Plate At A Time

DAVID COHEN
Just Be It

DONNA MARIE TODD
Harnessing The Power Of Storytelling For Transformation

GARY JULES
Mad World & Fallling Awake - Performance


2015

BERNARD DE KOVEN
The Politics Of Public Playfulness

OSCAR WONG
Business Timing

JUDY CALIBRESE
The Mother & The Artist

FORREST HEATH, III
Want To Change Transportation? Change Perceptions

SUSAN CAIN
Beyond Iron Man: Smart Armor & The Communication Warrior

LEAH SONG
What Is The Slow Music Movement?

MELANIE NORRIS
Chasing The Muse


2012

JOSEPH MINICOZZI
The City Shaped

THOMAS CALLOWAY
Why The End Of The World

ANN REEDER HECK
A Road To The Heart

REV. BRIAN COOMBS
Privileging The Poor, Why We Need The Disinherited

MICHAEL FISHBACH
The Awe-Inspiring World Of The Giant Blue Whale

AVI GOLDBERG
The Present And Future Of Brain-Computer Interfaces

KATIE SPOTZ
Rowing The Atlantic

DAVID OSTERGAARD
Who We Are And Are We Who

DR. HUTTON KEARNEY
Diagnosing The Genome

TINA STALEY
The Perfect Last Day

CASEY DRISSEN
The Singularity


2011

BIRKE BAEHR
What It Means To Speak At TEDx

ADAM BAKER
Sell Your Crap. Pay Your Debt. Do What You Love.

MICHAEL HAYES
Urban Arts Institute: Empowering Youth, Transforming Lives

JEFF KLUGER
The Hidden Power Of Siblings

AMIE TRACEY
The Future Of Community Journalism

SAM HAYWOOD
Musical Performance

JOYCE ROUSH
The Power Of One

LEAH QUINTAL
Beyond Handouts In Haiti

JUSTIN PURNELL
Teach The World Online

CHRIS YURA
Wear A Better Story


2010

JAMES NAVÉ
From The Imaginative Storm To The Creative Form

RIVER GUERGERIAN & BAND
Ancient Technologies

BIRKE BAEHR
What's Wrong With Our Food System

ANGELA SHELTON
The Heart Of The Matter

EUSTACE CONWAY
Traditional Lifestyles Of The 21st Century

LAURIE MASTERTON
Bikes, Bees and Cooking For Survival

BILLY JONAS
The Art Of War

JOHN MILES
Happiness In Business and Innerpreneurship

JEFF SCHMITT
The Road To Wellness


2010 - NextGenerationAsheville

JONATHON SCHENKER
Gaming The Educational System

CHASE PICKERING
Youth Leadership In Our Community

MIRANDA NORLIN
Social Justice Through Music

ASHEVILLE YOUTH BALLET

MARTEL JACKSON & ANDREA GRIFFIN
Bullying Prevention

EMERY McGAHA & ROSS MARNOCK
Filmmaking & Creative Adaptation

SUMMIT JAFFE
Numatik

GABE DUNSMITH
Environmental Activism

ESTELLA CUMBERFORD
Walking A Mile In My Shoes

JAZZ THE RIPPER

NATE WILCOX-PETTIT
Why Does Music Make Me Feel So Good?

DAVID RUDOW
Our Universal Connection


2009

DREW JONES
A Hopeful Trajectory For Climate Change

DEE EGGERS
Dolphins As Persons

GLENIS REDMOND
Poetry

DAVE HAMILTON & CHRIS TANFIELD
Theremin and Synth Performance

ROBERT ZIMMERMAN
Making A Difference

DOC HENDLEY
Extraordinarily Ordinary

CAROLINE YONGUE
Home Funerals